GUWAHATI, Feb 7 - Though the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) is desperate to get the Citizenship (Amendment) Bill, passed in the Rajya Sabha to provide citizenship to the minority communities in Bangladesh, Pakistan and Afghanistan, the issue of minorities facing religious persecution was not raised by Prime Minister Narendra Modi in his meeting with Bangladesh Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina.
The Ministry of External Affairs released a detailed note on the meeting between the Prime Ministers of both the countries held in 2017 and the issue of religious persecution of minority communities in Bangladesh was not raised by Modi in the meeting, where a wide ranging issues of mutual cooperation in the areas of counter terrorism, development, etc., were discussed. Even the issue of illegal migration of Bangladeshi nationals to India, which was one of the main poll promises of the BJP, both in the 2014 general elections and 2016 Assembly elections in Assam, was not discussed in the meeting between the two Prime Ministers.
In fact, Modi appreciated the impressive socio-economic development in Bangladesh and the steps taken by Prime Minister Hasina to strengthen democracy in Bangladesh and promote peace, security and stability in the region and beyond. Prime Minister Modi also commended Prime Minister Hasina for her consistent efforts to combat terrorism and violent extremism in Bangladesh
The note issued by the MEA after the meeting said, �during the talks, the two Prime Ministers affirmed that the relationship between India and Bangladesh was anchored in history, culture, language and shared values of secularism, democracy, and countless other commonalities between the two countries. They emphasized that relations between India and Bangladesh are based on fraternal ties and reflective of an all-encompassing partnership based on sovereignty, equality, trust and understanding that goes far beyond a strategic partnership. They re-affirmed their common aspiration for peace, collective prosperity and development of the region and beyond.�
The two Prime Ministers condemned the genocide that occurred in Bangladesh in 1971. They solemnly acknowledged the atrocities and called upon the international community to recognize and preserve the memory of those who lost their lives and those who suffered during the genocide.
The Prime Ministers dwelt at length on the problem of terrorism and observed that terrorism remains one of the most significant threats to peace and stability in the region and reiterated their strong commitment to combat terrorism in all its forms and manifestations. They stressed that there can be no justification whatsoever for any act of terror. The two Prime Ministers expressed satisfaction at the extent of cooperation between the two countries on security related issues. They strongly condemned the recent barbaric terror attacks in India and Bangladesh and expressed their conviction that the fight against terrorism should not only seek to disrupt and eliminate terrorists, terror organizations and networks, but should also identify, hold accountable and take strong measures against States and entities which encourage, support and finance terrorism, provide sanctuary to terrorists and terror groups, and falsely extol their virtues. They shared the view that there should be no glorification of terrorists as martyrs. They called on the international community to end selective or partial approaches to combating terrorism and, in this regard, jointly called for the early finalization and adoption of a Comprehensive Convention on International Terrorism by the UNGA.
The two leaders also discussed other issues including defence cooperation, connectivity, trade and commerce, etc., but there was no mention of the issue of infiltration of Bangladeshi nationals to India or religious persecution of the minorities in Bangladesh.
